Electrically-driven clock.



T. RUSHTON.

ELECTRICALLY DRIVEN CLOCK.

APPLICATION men JUNE13. 1912.

Patented May 11, 1915.

3 SHEETSSHEET l- T. RUSHTON.

ELEQTRICALLY DRIVEN CLOCK. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 13. 1912.

1,138,979. I Patented May 11, 1915.

3 SHE ETSSHEET 2- .Zzverzlor T. RUSHTON.

' ELECTRlCALLY DRIVEN CLOCK.

APPLICATION FILED IUNE I3, 1912- 1,138,979. Patented May 11, 1915.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3- iq-f I fllnessea Lz enlor M ma MM Y THOMAS RUSHTON, 0F UPPER HOLLOWAY, LONDON, ENGLAND.

ELECTRICALLY-DRIVEN CLOCK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 11, 1915.

Application filed June 13, 1912. Serial No. 703,553.

To a?! whom it 222 (13 concern Be it known that I, THOMAS BUISHTON, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at 2-1 Salisbury road, Upper Holloway;-

in the county of London, England, have invented a new and useful Electrically-Driven Clock, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to electrically driven clockwork in which the driving device is wound at intervals by the'action of an electromagnet. According to the invention the contact making arm is normally supported by a part driven with the clock train, and is allowed to fall at intervals upon a pawl engaging the winding wheel; its fall closes a contact completing the'circuit of an electromagnet the excitation of which results in the required winding movement. During this movement the pawl will be raised by the teeth of the wheel it engages, and through it the contact making arm is lifted back on to its support. A preferred form of this support consists of a notched or slotted rim rotated by the clock, and supporting the contact arm not directly but through a springy member which is deflected before it falls so that when restored to the support it springs beyond the notch through which it fell.

In the accompanying drawingsFigures 1 and 2 show front and side elevations respectively of a spring driven clockwork mechanism according to the invention, one of the frame plates being removed in Fig. 1. Fig. '3 shows in three positions an alternative structure of a detail. Fig. 4 shows diagrammatically the application of the invention to a weight driven clock.

In Figs. land 2 the driving spring is contained in a drum indicated at 1 (Fig. 2) and is wound in the ordinary way by coiling; obviously a spring could be tensioned longitudinally to drive the clock. This drum has secured to it a wheel 2, which is preferably a ratchet wheel though not so shown, and which with the drum rotates loosely on the arbor 3 to which the fi-rst wheel 4 of the driven train is secured. The spring within the drum is attached at one end to the drum and at the other end to the arbor in the usual way. Pinion 5, arbor 6 and wheel 7 are the next members of the driven train which terminates in the arbor 8 of a suitable escapement, not shown,-which may be controlled by a pendulum or balance wheel or other known device.

The winding wheel 2 is adapted to be turned in the direction for winding by a pawl 9 secured upon a lever 10 which is pivoted to the arbor 3 and of which one end forms the armature of electromagnet 11, while the other end forms a counterbalance to return the armature from the attracted position. There may be a springto restore the armature if desired. The winding wheel is prevented from turningbackward by the check pawl 12 which is pivotally mounted on the back plate 13 of the clockwork frame. The frame is formed in usual manner by the two plates 13 and 14, joined by rods 15, and the plates form bearings for the various arbors of the train. A spring 16 presses the pawl could be used for the purpose.

The second contact consists of an arm 19 passing to a spindle 20 which is rotatably mounted in the frame. The spindle also carries the second arm 21, consisting of a flat spring set in a vertical plane, so as to be flexible laterally. The inturned end 22 of this arm is pressed by spring 28 upon a slotted rim 23 which is secured to and rotates with the wheel 7. The outer surface of this rim is formed with a number of long ratchet teeth 24 which terminate at the slots. As shown, spring 28 is a resilient wire projecting from the back plate 13 and bent to press upon the arm 21. In the construction shown the spindle 20 forms a stop for the armature 10 and is covered with cushioning material to deaden sound.

The electrical circuit of the magnet when completed extendsfrom a battery or other source of E. not shown through conductor 25, the winding of the magnet to the clock frame at 26, thence through spindle 20, arm '19, spring 16 to conductor 27 which leads to the other pole of the source.

The action of the apparatus is as follows:

As rim 23rotates one of'its teeth 24 grad ually presses theend 22 of arm 21 outward until a slot is beneaththe arm. When this happens the arm 21 falls under the action of spring 28, its end 22 passing through the slot. Thus spindle 20 is turned and arm 19 is brought into contact with spring 16. This completes the circuit of the electromagnet 9 i which accordingly is excited and attracts its armature 10. The consequent movement of pawl 9 with the armature turns the winding wheel 2- forward one tooth. As the wheel turns the check pawl 12 is raised against the action of spring 16 and lifts the arm 19, so also lifting arm 21. y The end 22 of this arm passes upward through the slot in rim '23 through which it fell, the beveled upper edge of the end 22 enabling it to be pressed laterally in passing the slot. When the slot is passed the arm springs laterally (to the left in Fig.2) so that its end rests on'the upper surface of the adjacent tooth 24. Thus when the pawl 12 at the end of the movement of wheel 2 falls between the next pair of teeth, the arm 19 does not follow it, but is held up by the engagement of arm 21 upon toothed rim 23. In this way the spring in drum 1 is wound a little and the motion of the clock continues. The end 22 of arm 21 soon falls off the tooth 24 on to which it has been lifted and is then gradually pressed outward by the next tooth as first above described.

It will be obvious that the space between two .slots of 'the rim 23 must correspond with one tooth of the wheel 2. It is not necessary that the rim 23 should be on wheel 7 it could be on any member of the train so long as the gear ratio was such as to make the space between two slots of the rim corre spond to the extent of drive given by each movement of pawl 9.

The mechanism shown in Fig. 3 is an alternative to the rim 23 with its teeth and slots. It consists of a wheel 29 having slots 30 cut into but not through its periphery. The arm 31 which replaces the spring arm 21 carries at its end a pivoted finger 32 which is pressed by a spring 33 towarda stop 34. When the wheel 29 is in motion the frictional drag of its periphery upon the finger 32 moves this finger in the direction of motion against the action of spring 33 asjs clearly seen in the lower part view in Fig. 3. When a slot is reached the finger drops into itas shown in the full view in Fig. 3. It is almost immediately lifted out, as above exp ained by the lifting of the check pawl, and when so lifted the finger not being subject to any drag will spring to the left as indicated in the upper part view of Fig. 3 and so will come to rest a ain upon the periphery of the wheel. he spring action thus prevents it falling again through the slot when the check pawl falls again into engagement with the teeth of the winding wheel.

' In the mechanism shown in Fig. 4, 35 is thedriving Weight which is secured to an arm loosely pivoted on the driving spindle 36. Ratchet wheel 37 which is fast on the driving spindle corresponds to the winding wheel on the spring driven construction, and is engaged by'a pawl 38 pivbted on the arm and spring pressed toward the ratchet teeth. This pawl --or part of it is insulated as before, and is adapted to make contact with a bell crank lever 39, the further end of which engages with a support such as those already described by which it is normally kept out of contact with the pawl. When it falls a circuit is closed, and this results in the raising of the weight 35 by an electromagnet 40, of which the weight supporting arm may form the armature. In this movement the pawl is raised by the teeth over which it passes, and presses back the lever 39, the parts being so disposed that this movement lifts the end of the lever back upon its support This device is shown only in rudimentary form and it will be noted that there is no drive at the instant of winding. Means may readily be provided for maintaining the drive. I

What I claim is:

1. In an electric clock the combination of a winding wheel, a pawl resting thereon, a contact arm in position to fall upon and be lifted by said pawl, and a member adapted to receive said arm when lifted and to support it for an interval.

2. In an electric clock the combination of a contact arm, a resilient member attached to said arm, a support continuously rotated by the clock and adapted to deflect said member and having slots permitting said member to fall when deflected.

3. In an electric clock the combination of a contact arm, a slotted rim continuously rotated by the clock, a member attached to said contact arm normally resting on and deflected by the rotating rim, but free to fall through the slots when deflected, and means for raising said member through the slots again so that it may spring beyond them.

4. In an electric clock, the combination of a pivoted contact arm,.a winding wheel, a pawl engaging saidvwheel and in position to receive the contactarm, a supporting member rotated by the clock, and an arm attached to the contact arm adapted to be lifted on to said support by the passage of the pawl over a tooth.

5. In an electric clock, the combination of a slotted rim continuously rotated by the clock, an arm resting on said rim and a springy finger onsaid arm adapted to be deflected by said rim and to fall through In testimony whereof I have signed my the slots, and to spring beyond a, slot when name to this specification in the presence of '10 lifted through it. two subscribing Witnesses.

6. In an electric clock, the combination of 5 a winding wheel, a pawl engaging there- THOMAS RUSHTON.

with, a, contact arm in position to fall upon Witnesses: said pawl, and imiependent means support- A E. ODELL, ing said arm when lifteti by the pawl. LEONARD E. HAYNES. 

